Bucky___lastard

Wow, Kovalchuk with a natural hat trick in the 1st period.
 
GG boys

Playoff Primer: Toronto at Seattle
 

 
Welcome to the first primer article leading into this season's VHL playoffs. This season is off to an exciting start, with the plucky Seattle Bears taking on the legends of the Toronto Legion. It's a battle of the old versus the new, with the core of the Legion, an established crop of S63 players trying to hold onto glory taking on the up and coming Bears and their core of S67 sophomores. Can veteran experience defeat a slump? Can Romulous beat Ursine? We'll see!
 
The Teams:
 

 
Toronto had a perfectly balanced .500 season, finishing with 29 wins, 29 losses, and 14 overtime losses to finish the season with a respectable 72 points. Though they finished the season with a relatively average goal differential, they're a team based on high-skill defenders such as perrenial VHFL superstar Tzuyu @tfong and fightin' Irish Lando Baxter @Elhandon. Toronto seemed to be snakebit this year, with only two of their regular rostered players shooting over 10%. Toronto's motto this season was that the best Offense is a good Defense, and it seems they were able to turtle their way into the playoffs by outlasting their opponents, rather than outgunning them.
 

 
S68 was the first that The Bears came into their own. After an abysmal bottom feeding end to S67, an off-season training and diet regemen created to encourage player development allowed them to top their conference and come out fourth-overall, beating out less skilled teams like The Wolves by a wide margin. The Bears finished the season 43-24-5, only 3 wins back of the top seed in the entire league, and have set themselves up for a first-round home-ice @Advantage. If The Legion are an immovable object, The Bears are an unstoppable force, their top six all posting 50 point plus seasons, lead by captain Acyd Burn @Acydburn, who both lead the team in scoring and posted his first point-per-game season (though surely not his last).  The Bears aren't a one-trick pony though, and managed to post these offensive numbers while also tying for the second-lowest goals against in the league thanks to a heroic effort by their MVP goalie Ray Funkz @Rayzor_7. If this trend continues, The Legion will have to be cautious that their spears don't shatter against The Bears' defensive prowess.
 
The Story So Far:
 

 
Being division rivals, The Bears and The Legion have squared off eight times this season, with The Legion taking home three victories and five defeats. Among those wins; however, was a 5-0 sloughing of Seattle's finest. The Legion also hold the edge in experience and leadership. The result? This series could go either way, and if The Bears get too ahead of themselves, they could easily be found with pucks in their own net.  If Seattle takes Toronto seriously and shells the goalie with high-percentage chances, they should be able to come out on top, but a betting man looking to make a high-reward wager may be inclined to pick Toronto for this series. Crazier things have happened in this mixed up league we all play in.
 
Good luck to both teams, I'll be back in Round Two with further coverage.
 
529 Words
TPE for week ending October 27

If I lose to a weaker team that doesn’t send lines I’ll be pissed off. 
 
hands down should be Seattle’s series

You actually had yesterday and Saturday so my pity level is low

Considering I didn't send lines in, I'll take this. @Beketov of course you had to sim it at like...fucking 5 am my time. I know I know I had all of yesterday, but been sick, low on food and out of coffee so life takes precedent. I thought I'd have time this morning but time difference. 1-1 though heading home, just gotta dominate. 

Thank god.

It's like baseball and pitching records - nobody's going to touch Cy Young's 511 wins because people don't pitch every day anymore, Warren Spahn's 363 makes more sense and is actually attainable (Maddux, Clemens were close)

Combined with the fact that Scotty was our first simmer so was able to figure out exactly the meta build for STHS while everyone else was flailing about trying to figure out what worked.
 
I’ve long suggested we lock the record books and start fresh ones so that some records are actually attainable. For example, Thompson has the most goals of any player since S10 and it’s still only 4th all-time and over 200 under Scotty. No other player has hit 500 goals, Scotty has over 600.

Probably helped that there was nobody better/more experienced in every single season he played, due to the fact that he started at the beginning. That's likely why anything he's done is untouchable.

All time everything leader*

STHS:

Struggling this season? I'll be kind to you this game.

3. Toronto Legion , Rylan Peace 25 (Tzuyu 44, Lando Baxter 34) at 10:29 (PP)
4. Toronto Legion , Rylan Peace 26 (Koda Adok 7) at 10:51
5. Toronto Legion , Rylan Peace 27 (Tzuyu 45) at 14:31

ME: 


 

Unlinking GM Players
Since the VHL's very first season GM's have always had their player linked to their team. This meant that they automatically went to that GM's team instead of entering the draft and had complicated rules regarding how they could be traded, how GM changes were made, etc. This was made only worse when project player 2 was initiated and then kept around for GM's only. But not any more. As of now GM players are no longer a thing!
 
So what does this mean exactly? Obviously GM's can still have players however GM is becoming like every other position in the league and will be only a job, unrelated to a player. When GM's create players they will enter the draft like any other player and be trade-able like any other player. This means when GM jobs change hands nothing needs to be changed in regards to players, a new member simply takes over the team.
 
For the most part this cleans up rules regarding GM's and their own players with a few minor exceptions:
 
1. GM's may draft their own player if they so choose and that player may stay with the team as long as they choose. However GM's found to be manipulating their player's draft stock in order to secure him for their team will be punished. This could include, but is not limited to, the player going to FA immediately and the GM being removed from their position. An example of draft stock manipulation would be choosing to not claim any TPE until after the draft in order to appear worse than they are or threatening to hold out if they are drafted by any other team.
 
2. GM's may not sign their own player via Free Agency. This is simply to avoid people being drafted by another team and inevitably jumping ship to their own after 3 seasons.
 
Neither of these limitations are new, they have always been the case with GM's however they seem necessary to keep around. They will be the only limitations though. GM's who acquire their own players can trade them freely, the players can play for whatever team they'd like, and they will no longer be excluded from the draft.
 
These limitations do, however, offer some extra limits to the careers GM's can have with their players. For example, what if they did in fact want to spend 8 full seasons on their own team? For that we have added a minor caveat. If a GM so chooses they may "claim" their player by giving up a 1st round pick int he same draft as their player. This will block other GM's from choosing the player in the draft. If a GM does not have a first round pick in the draft their player resides they may not claim their player. In addition, claiming a player still does not link that player to the team. They may still be traded or go to FA as they normally would be allowed to do. All it affects is the draft itself.
 
Project Player 2's Full Removal
 
With GM's being able to be more or less free with their players the extra benefit they receive to have a "normal career", which is to say the final phases of project player 2, are no longer necessary. It was left in place to allow GM's the freedom to move around with their players like anyone else rather than being tied to their own franchise. However with now 12 teams in the league these 2nd players account for an entire team worth of extra roster spots that are being taken up by people who have other players already. In addition there has been a trend of GM's acquiring both their own players which was never the intention of keeping PP2 around.
 
So, with the removal of GM players we will also be removing project player 2 completely. No one, moving forward, will be allowed to update two players simultaneously.
 
Implementing These Changes
 
Obviously these changes can't be implemented overnight. With 12 GM's currently accounting for 24 players (half of which are linked to teams) there is simply no clean way to do this quickly. For that reason all current players controlled by GM's shall be grandfathered in under the old regulations. This means nothing will change immediately but once a GM retires one of their players, they will not be allowed to create a new player until their other player retires. At that time they may take the carryover from whichever player had more TPE and create their new unlinked player. 
 
Just as an example I’ll use @Quik who’s GM player is Bailey, his older player. When Bailey retires ACL is still around so Quik can’t make another player until ACL retires, regardless of the fact that his GM player is now gone. ACL is treated as a regular player and a regular asset, to be traded or whatnot however Quik pleases with the remaining exception of FA in place if he leaves Helsinki. Upon ACL’s retirement Quik can re-create using whichever carryover amount (Bailey’s or ACL’s) is higher. This new player has the above mentioned 2 limitations but no others. He does not go directly to Helsinki but instead to the draft where he is treated as a regular prospect unless otherwise paid for and claimed via a first round pick.

A 3 win sim? What is this!

Glover with the game winner in the Shootout!
 
 

Rookie Profiles were 8 and Biography were 10, so it was 18 TPE, not 15. Given that the bio in the new system can't be done till your eighth season, the difference is basically 2 TPE for the majority of your career.
 
 

Career Point Task Change
 
Hello,  @Members
 
With the trade deadline imminent and S70 players being created staring today I wanted to inform you all of a change to be taking place with how career point tasks (currently rookie profile and bio) are to be handled in the VHL. Several months back we asked about things our sister leagues do that you'd like to see in the VHL and several of you mentioned the way they handle career tasks to be superior to our own in that they are more spread out over a career instead of being done at the beginning before a career has really had time to take shape. With that in mind the BOG has come up with a new set of tasks which will replace our old RP and Bio set. Those 2 have now been split into 5:
 
Junior Review (Can be written at any point, but preferably when you're in the VHLM) - A review of your players career up to the point they join the VHLM/declare for their VHL draft  Prospect Scouting Report (To be written during a Player's VHL Draft Season, up until the start of the following season) - Short review of VHLM career,  focus on pros/cons, or other method of scouting report Rookie Experience (To be written during your VHL Rookie Season) - Talk about graduating to the VHL, expectations, reservations, etc. Veteran Presence (to be written during your third or fourth post-draft season) - Talk specifically about what it means to become a veteran on a team and how it's different than being a rookie. This is more of a roleplaying PT than a career summary Biography (to be written during your 8th season, 800 Words, 8 TPE) - Career recap  
These changes will take effect for all players in the S70 draft and above. Players previous to S70 will be grandfathered in to the previous model of RP and Bio since they have, in all likelihood, already written them and received points for them. Exact rubrics for these career PT's will be written up shortly but we wanted to get them announced before players start creating for S70 and working on the old tasks.

I refuse to believe this is some miscommunication or series of unfortunate events. Shit like this is a fundamental right of passage on sim leagues and shouldn't be lambasted and stigmatized so harshly.
 
 
Salute to whoever engineered this imho. I respect the finesse. 
 

Well...I tried. Not often you score a hat trick and lose haha. Still, only 6 more goals! Also a 6 point sim means I'm officially tied with @jRuutu. Told you I was coming for your ass!

Very hard fought W. GG TOR

S68 VHL Games of Interest
 
There’s a lot of things I love about stats and numbers, but one of the greatest things statistics gives us is the ability to find interesting stories in a whole mess of numbers. I took a look through the advanced metrics of all the S68 VHL games so far and focused in on individual games to pull out some memorable games from the first half of the season.
 
Most Dominating Offensive Performances – these teams had the largest Corsi For numbers in an single game this season.
5) Game 39 - D.C. Dragons vs Toronto Legion– In their 9-1 victory, Toronto racked up 112 shot attempts, 55 of which were on goal. Teagan Glover got a hat trick during this drubbing.
4) Game 81 - Moscow Menace vs Prague Phantoms – In an absolutely bonkers game that we’ll revisit later Moscow had 114 shot attempts. Unfortunately for them, their aim was dreadful and with only 40 % of those attempts landing on goal (46 shots on goal). There were multiple sequences like the following:
7:18 of 2nd period - Shot by Dean Clarke.
7:18 of 2nd period - Shot Misses the Net.
7:20 of 2nd period - Shot by Mat Tocco.
7:20 of 2nd period - Deflect By Jet Jaguar.
7:20 of 2nd period - Shot Misses the Net.
7:22 of 2nd period - Shot by Edward Vigneault.
7:22 of 2nd period - Shot Misses the Net.
7:24 of 2nd period - Shot by Mat Tocco.
7:24 of 2nd period - Shot Misses the Net.
That’s 4 shots in 6 seconds, all of which missed the net. That lack of accuracy helped Prague get more shots than Moscow (47 – 46 shots on goal) and win this game 6-5.
3) Game 132 - Prague Phantoms vs D.C. Dragons – Prague was feeling it tonight as they let loose 116 attempts on goal leading to a staggering 66 shots on goal. D.C. goalie Pekka Pouta faced the onslaught of all 66 shots, but was only able to stop 61 of them. Prague won 5-3.
2) Game 182 - Helsinki Titans vs Moscow Menace – Another game where Moscow went crazy on offense yet couldn’t win the game. Moscow had 121 attempts on goal with 62 shots on goal. Helsinki goalie Alexander Pepper had an all-time classic performance making 60 saves, leading Helsinki to a 4-2 victory.
1) Game 191 - Prague Phantoms vs Moscow Menace – With 3 of the top 5 offensive performances this season, it’s clear that Moscow has serious offensive chops. Their best performance was this game against Prague, 127 attempts on goal, 62 shots on goal, and a 6-2 win.
 
Most Dominating Defensive Performances – these teams had the smallest Corsi Against number, meaning they allowed the fewest shot attempts on their goal.
5a) Game 204 - Riga Reign vs HC Davos Dynamo – Davos was able to hold the 2nd place Riga team to only 24 shot attempts resulting in 15 shots on goal. With the strong defensive performance, Davos was able to win 3-2.
5b) Game 155 - Vancouver Wolves vs D.C. Dragons  - Vancouver abused the expansion team allowing 24 shot attempts and only 13 shots on goal. Their backup goalie got the shutout in a 2-0 victory.
4) Game 170 - D.C. Dragons vs Vancouver Wolves – Besting their previous performance, Vancouver held D.C to 22 shot attempts and 12 shots on goal. 3-2 Vancouver victory.
3) Game 162 -  D.C. Dragons vs HC Davos Dynamo – In a particularly tough run of games for D.C., Davos only allowed 21 shot attempts and 11 shots on goal. They easily secured a 5-2 victory.
2) Game 126 -  D.C. Dragons vs Malmo Nighthawks – Malmo took their turn with the Dragons. They allowed 20 shot attempts and 11 shots on goal. A 5-2 victory was their reward.
1) Game 9 - Seattle Bears vs D.C. Dragons – In their 2nd game of the season, Seattle set the defensive bar extremely high. They allowed 19 shot attempts and 10 shots on goal. Their backup goalie showed why he’s the backup, letting 2 of those 10 shots in. Seattle still came out with the win, 3-2.
 
Most Exciting Games – These games have the highest Corsi For by both teams in the game. That means they had the most shot attempts and probably the most action.
5) Game 177 - Toronto Legion vs Helsinki Titans – Interestingly enough this game featured 177 total attempts on goal, the same as the game number. Helsinki had 98 compared to Toronto’s 79 and won 5-4.
4) Game 160 - Prague Phantoms vs Helsinki Titans – Although this game ultimately ended in a 3-2 (1-0) shootout loss for them, I think Prague should be extremely proud of this game. They went toe to toe with the #1 team in a very exciting game. The teams combined for 178 shot attempts (101 for Helsinki, 77 for Prague).
3) Game 179 - Moscow Menace vs Calgary Wranglers – This was an extremely close, back and forth game. The teams combined for 178 shot attempts (91 for Calgary, 87 for Moscow). This game fittingly ended with the teams having the exact same number of shots on goal, 41. Moscow won 3-2 (2-1) in a shootout.
2) Game 97 - Moscow Menace vs Riga Reign – Moscow jumped out to an early lead, but Riga kept clawing back, tying the game 3 separate times and ultimately winning 5-4 (2-1) in a shootout. The teams evenly spit the total number of attempts, 181 with Riga making 90 shot attempts and Moscow making 91 attempts. The 181 attempts meant there were 3 attempts on goal every minute.
1) Game 81 - Moscow Menace vs Prague Phantoms – We discussed this game in the most dominating offensive performances due to Moscow accounting for 114 shot attempts in this game. Prague held their own with 80 attempts, creating a total attempt count of 194, 13 more attempts than the next closes game! Fans were treated to a fun Prague victory, 6-5.
 
Most Boring Games – These games featured the least Corsi For by both teams. In game reports say some fans actually fell asleep.
1a) Game 123 - Calgary Wranglers vs Seattle Bears – Not only did this snooze-fest feature a season low 79 total attempts (53 for Seattle, 26 for Calgary), it was a 4-0 blowout for Seattle
1b) Game 126 - D.C. Dragons vs Malmo Nighthawks – This game also featured a paltry 79 total shot attempts. Unsurprisingly, this game was also featured in the top defensive performance because D.C. only had 20 attempts. With Malmo in control for most of the game and a scoreless 2nd period, this game is a forgettable one.
 
Closest Games – These games featured teams with a 0 Corsi total. That means they had the exact same number of shot attempts and shot attempts allowed in the game.
1a) Game 93 - Helsinki Titans vs Seattle Bears – Both Helsinki and Seattle had 57 attempts on goal. A empty net goal helped Seattle have a slightly skewed score line of 5-3.
1b) Game 198 - Moscow Menace vs Malmo Nighthawks – Both teams had 62 attempts on goal. Moscow snuck out a 4-3 victory on a Dan Baillie powerplay goal thanks to a Condor Adrienne OT penalty.
1c) Game 131 - Malmo Nighthawks vs Vancouver Wolves – The cross conference teams each tallied 65 shot attempts. Malmo rode the back of 4 powerplay goals to a 5-3 victory.
 
Not surprisingly the biggest blowouts, the games that had the greatest difference in Corsi For between the two teams are already featured in this article. Specifically, Game 9, the most dominating defensive performance by Seattle and Moscow’s most dominating offensive performance in Game 191.
 
I hope this was an enjoyable read, any insight is welcome. This took a fair amount of time to come up with and if no one else finds it interesting, I might refocus my time to other article ideas. If it’s something people want me to continue to produce on a periodic basis (or for the VHLM), please let me know.
 
Over 1,000 words. Will claim for Weeks ending 10/6 and 10/13.

Note: Some of these items have been live for a little bit so you may have noticed them already. 
 
Updating
No member can approve their own updates anymore.  Minor validation improvements based on discussion with updater's on common mistakes they're seeing - more to come on this.  Updater's can once again un-approve updates without needing an administrator.  The uncapped portion of double weeks now have to be claimed separately under "Other" instead of being added to Point Tasks. This is necessary as the lottery needs to be able to differentiate between capped and uncapped.  Took steps to improve admin/updater ability to reconcile a player's attributes/banked with their expected TPA, as players have sometimes gotten slight off-balance as a result of manual adjustments. As part of this, player's will notice that: An initial "Base TPE" update will now appear in update logs to represent the 30 starting TPE and any carryover claimed. An update with negative TPE will be now appear in update logs when a player is depreciated. The negative TPE represents the total TPA lost as a result of depreciation. Players
Updated the Player List with the new filtering structure from other areas. Apparently people didn't know this so I made it clearer, you can actually search for players by Username using the auto-complete tool.  Updated the page layout of various pages to match the new layout used elsewhere.  @Josh Set up automatic processing for Contracts.  
Fixes
Fixed the issues GM's experienced with drafting in the off-season. Fixed the issue where positions weren't appearing on Team pages. Fixed the issue where VHLM Goalies weren't displaying properly on the League Overall stat page.  Fixed a whole bunch of links that weren't being styled properly.  Fixed an issue where the "Player Movement" tab wasn't displaying properly on certain Player Pages.
View full release

Stringing the wins together boys, keep it up!

yes please.. I picked you for fantasy... I fucked up =/

Niceee

GJ team!